Combined dining table and dishwasher



Feb. 14, 1961 w. WILLSON 2,971,519

COMBINED DINING TABLE AND DISHWASHER Filed Aug. 6, 1957 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 I g/ ,w/// zm /W v m 38 IWI Z2 35 a 44 E J" LCM a INVENTOR WWW/ 1250 WAAso/V $Mw7 m,

ATTORNEY Feb. 14, 1961 w. WlLLSON 2,971,519

COMBINED DINING TABLE AND DISHWASHER Filed Aug. 6, 1957 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 TIH'E' 12 i .4 J z; 3

INVENTOR %v/F/?4 MAJON EQWL,

ATTORNEYS.

COMBINED DINING TABLE AND DISHWASHER Winifred Willson, 48 Commerce St., New York 14, NY.

Filed Aug. 6, 1957, Ser. No. 676,673

10 Claims. (Cl. 134-58) This invention is a combined dining table and dishwasher, the principal object of which is to provide in one structure a dining table and one or a plurality of dishwashing compartments and tableware storage compartments below the table top, thereby eliminating entirely for the housewife the usual five operations of clearing the table, washing the dishes and flatware, drying and storing them and setting the table with them for the next meal.

Each compartment is equipped with one complete set of tableware, so simple that thedishes can be removed therefrom and the used dishes placed therein, by a small child.

The compartments for the dishes are built-inbelow 'the table top and are provided with spray pipes for Built in below the table top and supported by the pedestal is a plurality of tableware washing and storage compart :ments.

With a round table, these compartments would be preferably wedge shaped.

These compartments are provided with racks; openwork baskets for silverware; supports for dishes, cups, glasses and the like; and with spray pipes for directing water upwardly and downwardly on tableware positioned on such supports.

Each compartment is provided with a water tight door; preferably, each door is provided with a switch, these switches controlling a hot water inlet valve so that hot wash water will not be admitted unless all the doors are closed.

The tabletop may be provided with hot plates or warming plates and electrical outlets for plugging in percolators and other cooking and heating utensils.

Further details and advantages will be described in connection with the accompanying drawings, which are illustrative but not restrictive of the invention. In these drawings:

Fig. 1 is a top plan view of the combined dining table and dishwasher.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged vertical section on the li'ne2-2 ofFig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a horizontal section on line 3-3 of Fig. 2-, wherein some of the compartments contain tableware.

Fig. 4 is a vertical section on line 44- of Fig. 3. Fig. 5 is a detached perspective of a rack for tableware.

Figs. 6 and and Fig. 8 is a wiring diagram.

' Referring now to these drawings, the table 2 is sup- 7 are fragmentary view of door details;

Patented Feb. 14, 1961 ported on a central hollow pedestal 4 having a flared base 6. This table could be of any desired shape, such as, for example, round, five-sided, six-sided, or eightsided. Pedestal 4 is provided with a central hollow drain pipe or column 8; both 4 and 8 support outwardly and diagonally upwardly, extending thin walls 10 secured to the underside of table 2 for supporting it. Column 8 is also provided with radially extending partition walls 12, cooperating with walls 10 and the supporting underside of the table, and serving to define a plurality of dishwashing compartments, 14, 16, 18, and 20, here conveniently four in number and wedge-shaped as in Fig. 3.

Each compartment 14, 16, 18, and 20 is provided with a water-tight door 22, hinged at 24 to open outwardly and having handles 26; hinges 24 could be spring hinges for holding the doors closed; the hinges could be tight enough to be waterproof and the edges of the doors are provided with gaskets for preventing leakage; the inside of each door is provided with an open-work cutlery basket 28, thereby providing. drainage therefrom.

In addition to the cutlery baskets 28, the interior of each compartment is provided with racks and supports for tableware such as shown in Fig. 5 and comprising a grid 30, wire brackets 32 for supporting cups at 34, bowls at 35 and glasses at 36, and brackets 33 for plates, all secured to a standard 4%.

Each compartment is provided with arcuate spray pipes 42 for spraying liquid downwardly at various angles and forked spray pipes 44 for spraying liquid upwardly at various angles onto tableware positioned on the racks. Hot wateris supplied to these spray pipes by a plurality of hot water pipes 46, supplied by hot water inlet pipe tfi.

Compartment 14, Fig. 3, is shown in plan complete but with no tableware therein. Compartment 16 shows in plan the tableware in place on the several supports therefor. Compartment 13 is a plan view, with the plates omitted. Compartment 2%) is a plan view at the level of the plate racks 38.

In order to supply a detergent, preferably liquid, a detergent chamber 58 is provided having a cover 52 and feeder pipes 54, provided with valves, if desired, connected into spray pipes 42 and 44. Instead of the form of spray pipes shown, other types of sprays, such as known types of whirling sprays, could be used.

In place of manually operated valves for the detergent, the detergent could be supplied automatically by an electrically controlled timing valve, as known in the art of dishwashing and clothes washing machines, for supplying in succession rinse water, hot Water with detergent, and then clear hot rinse water.

Hot water inlet pipe 48 is provided with a manual shut-oft valve 56; also, pipe 48, as shown in Fig. 8, may. be provided with a known type of electrically operated valve 58, diagrammatically shown in Fig, 8, connected with switches 60, in series, the switches being closed by buttons 62, actuated by doors 22 when all doors are closed, to open valve 58; this arrangement prevents inadvertent starting of the washing operation unless all doors 22 are closed.

The hot water inlet pipe 48 may also be provided with an electrically operated valve 64 operated by a known type of timing switch 66 for automatically shutting off the hot water after a predetermined time, operated from a The hot plates 72 may be contor driven garbage disposal unit 76 of any suitable design.

To summarize the operation: The compartments 14, 16, 18, and 20 serve as storage compartments for clean tableware. The diners open a door 22 and remove any dishes or cutlery they desire and place them on the table. Food from the hot plates '72 or elsewhere is placed on the dishes and any other cooking or heating utensils, such as percolators, toasters, etc., plugged in the outlets 74. When finished, the used dishes are replaced on the proper racks or brackets in the respective compartments and the doors closed; a supply of detergent is released from 50 with the hot water valves 56 and 58 open, thereby washing the dishes. Detergent and hot rinse water may be supplied alternately, if desired. When the detergent is used up or shut off, the hot water spray is continued to rinse them clean, the wet dishes or utensils remaining in their respective compartments to drain and dry, so they will be ready for the next meal. The hot water supply is shut ofi manually by valve 56 or automatically by valve 64.

While a preferred construction has been described in detail, it should be understood that the disclosure is illustrative of the invention and that features may be modified or omitted without departing from the invention as defined, in the following claims.

I claim as my invention:

1. A combined dining table and dishwasher, comprising a single central supporting standard, walls carried by the upper part of said standard and extending diagonally upwardly and outwardly from said standard, a fixed horizontal table top of substantial horizontal area for supporting dishes and tableware thereon, said walls extending substantially to the underside of said table top, said walls and the underside of said table top defining between them a dishwashing zone extending circumferentially around the central supporting standard, water spray pipes and dish supporting racks in said dishwashing zone, water inlet pipes in said central supporting standard operatively connected with said spray pipes, a drain pipe in said central supporting standard, and watertight door means in said diagonal walls, for providing access to said dishwashing zone.

2. A combined dining table and dishwasher, comprising a fixed horizontal table top having a top surface of substantial area for supporting dishes and tableware thereon, a supporting standard positioned centrally below the table top, dishwashing compartments supported by said standard and radially disposed around said standard, said dishwashing compartments comprising outer walls slanting upwardly and outwardly from the central 7 standard and extending substantially to the underside of the table top and cooperating with the underside of the table top to define the dishwashing compartments, watertight doors in said slanting outer walls, for providing access to said dishwashing compartments, cleansing fluid spray pipes in said dishwashing compartments, and inlet and drain pipes for cleansing fluid.

3. The combination of claim 2, further including tableware supporting racks in said dishwashing compartments.

4. The combination of claim 2, wherein said fiuid inlet and drain pipes, are housed in said central supporting standard.

5. The combination of claim 2, further including a garbage disposal unit housed in said central supporting standard and cooperating with the drain pipe.

6. The combination of claim 2, further including a receptacle for a detergent, operatively connected with said fluid spray pipes.

7. The combination of claim 2, further including electrically controlled valve means for controlling the fluid fiow in said fluid spray pipes, and switches actuated by said doors and connected in series for controlling said valve for supplying fluid only when all of said watertight doors are closed.

8. The combination of claim 2 wherein said table top is provided with an electrical heater, some of the heat from which radiates downwardly into the dishwashing compartment directly beneath it.

9. A combined dining table and dishwasher, comprising a single central supporting standard, walls carried by the upper part of said standard and extending diagonal- 1y upwardly and outwardly from said standard, a fixed horizontal table top of substantial horizontal area for supporting dishes and tableware thereon, said walls extending substantially to the underside of said table top and forming an inclined circumferential wall, vertically and radially extending partitions positioned between said diagonal walls and the underside of the table top, said Walls and partitions cooperating with the underside of 'the table top to define a plurality of dishwashing compartments extending circumferentially around the central supporting standard, water spray pipes and dish supporting racks in said dishwashing compartments, water inlet pipe means in said central supporting standard, operatively connected with said spray pipes, a drain pipe in said central supporting standard, and water-tight door means for providing access to said dishwashing compartments.

10. A combined dining table and dishwasher, comprising a fixed horizontal table top having a top surface of substantial area for supporting dishes and tableware thereon, a supporting standard positioned centrally below the table top, dishwashing compartments supported by said standard and radially disposed around said standard, said dishwashing compartments comprising outer walls slanting upwardly and outwardly from the central standard and extending substantially to the underside of the table top and cooperating with the underside of the table top to define the dishwashing compartments, watertight door means for providing access to said dishwashing compartments, spray pipes for cleansing fluid for said dishwashing compartments, supply pipe means for supplying fluid to said spray pipes, and drain pipe means for draining cleansing fluid, said supply and drain pipe means being located in said central supporting standard.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

